adele

The most of women musicians cannot choose all kind of musical instrument. That a fact.
The majority is intented for men due to their forms, in particular "phallic" for the wind instruments, which is provoking to the woman's mouth.
Copper* instruments are on the other side strongly related to military music, a male dominated area and also not welcome on women.
Wind instruments are prohibited because a mouthpiece or reed must be placed in the mouth. Too sexuel. In addition, they may distort the face of young girls when they blow into it. Only the flute will challenge these 19th century codes to establish itself as a feminine instrument ; the mouth is delicately placed on te mouthpiece, so it still works.
Any instrument wich requires that the legs must be separate by them are considere like unsightly and sexual, which is also not tolerated for a woman. When it comes to percussion, a woman should not strike and make noise, because it gives a bestial appearance.

"The woman who encroaches on instruments specially reserved for men and who, for example, plays the viollin, the flute or the double bass, usually has a masculine character and a hint of mustache." Albert Cler, Physiologie du musicien, 1841.

This European speech dating since the beginning of the XIX until the middle of the XX, that is absolutely horrifies me, and it is with surprise that I discover these absurdities. Unfortunately these quotations above are not unpublished, they exist many others of this type. The image of a woman is reduced to a fine figure, pretty, polite and wise. More over, for a woman, playing music must be a leisure. Above all, do not express anything too loud and do not intrude on the man's role. A role where they attribute themself the capacity of carry heavy things and speack loudly.
I obviously know this discrimination, but I knewn't the magnitude of it, especialy with the choice of the instrument. This clearly shows that the image of woman as objects is rooted everywhere, and that we cannot even speak of choice today because our parents and ourselves still in this patriachal society. So, even if we surrender given the problems of no-equality, it is difficult to overcome them entirely. This is why it is always rarer to see a woman on drums or at the head of a brass band.

"Miss, the good god gave you a wonderful instrument between your legs to send men to heaven, not to scratch it." Hermann Scherchen, a bandmaster to a violoncellist.

"It seems that the piano is consciously or unconsciously perceived as the least directly sensual instrument that exists then. The keyboard sitting position is "modest", feet close together on the pedals" Florence Launay, French composers in the XIX, 2006